How Brands can Thrive with Live Streaming.

We live in an age of increasing digital consumption and decreasing attention spans. With 750 million smartphone users in India and counting, there are two truths in this age:

• Mobile has radically revolutionized how we consume content and facilitates a whole new level of shared experiences.
• The love for live streaming  is real – an addiction – which has seen massive growth since the pandemic.

While people stopped meeting live, they started streaming live.

With 482.5 billion hours spent on live streaming apps worldwide in 2020 alone, live streaming  is getting bigger than before. The US and China are the biggest markets for live streaming, with about 200 million and 703.4 million live streaming users, respectively. And now, live streaming is growing at an incredible rate in markets such as India and Indonesia.

This presents great opportunities to marketers around the world.

Marketers have begun to leverage live streaming to connect with their audiences in unique ways. The spike in time spent on gaming platforms and the growth in live shopping on social media give room for innovative approaches to influencer marketing – via live gaming, live shopping experiences and virtual events.

Live streaming is everywhere.

Its immense popularity can be credited to how it seamlessly captures attention in a dynamic way. According to a survey conducted by GlobalWebIndex in Q3 2020:

• 32% of YouTube users worldwide had watched a live-streamed video on the platform within the past month
• 24% of Facebook users worldwide had watched content on Facebook Live ​
• 12% of Instagram users worldwide had used the Live feature in the past month​

Live streaming makes any kind of content come alive.

From food, fashion and fitness to gaming, entertainment and music, both creators and consumers are turning to live streaming. No wonder brands are reaching their audiences through immersive live experiences across interest categories – cooking shows, music festivals, talk shows, live gaming and more. In fact, live is a great way of reaching esports enthusiasts, with 57% saying they watch esports through live video streaming as seen in a report conducted by GWI Gaming in Q4 2021.

Live streaming is therefore where creators meet consumers and facilitate gaming, shopping and entertainment.

Now, India is live.

Since India’s internet revolution gave people access to cheaper, faster internet, even in remote areas, the live streaming trend is growing rapidly in the country and promises great potential. For instance, in just five months, there was a 17% growth in the time spent per live show on Glance, India’s lock screen content discovery platform.

There are several startups propelling the creator-brand connect, helping creators craft quality content, grow their audience and collaborate with brands.

Besides this, creators in India are now seeing a range of platforms where they can connect with audiences across languages, states, interests, and cultures. Platforms such as Glance, Roposo, MX TakaTak, Josh, and Moj have taken the creator economy a long way, with a significant presence in tier 2 and 3 cities that offer creators and brands access to a large and diverse audience. These audiences are more inclined to purchase products online, especially when recommended by influencers, due to unavailability in the local market.

What’s more, live streaming is now. Speaking to the instant needs of the current internet user, live streaming creates a sense of urgency and captures attention in an interactive, engaging way. This makes live streaming strong in the country.

But can live streaming replace what we’ve been used to for ages?

There’s no doubt that live streaming is taking center stage in media consumption. But can it truly help marketers reach their consumers at the scale other platforms provide?

Live streaming has brought in a wave of change, paving the way for a total transformation in the world of content and marketing. As the appetite for live streaming grows in India, we can expect unmissable changes in the media buying landscape, content consumption and commerce. It is only a matter of time before more brands begin to ride this wave and thrive with live streaming.